Forever and Always
by Notjustanotherperson
Summary: Established Faberry. Quinn's waiting for Rachel to come home when she gets a phone call that turns her world upside down. It's only a few weeks till their wedding when the unimaginable happens, tearing apart their world.


**A/N This story is based on the song Forever And Always by Parachute. If you haven't heard it, you might want to listen to it first. Hope you enjoy!**

Quinn hears the buzzing of her phone and runs a hand over her sweaty forehead, wiping it on her checkered apron before she reaches over the counter to the illuminated screen.

"Hey baby, on my way home! I love you!" Quinn couldn't stop the wide grin that spread across her lips as she read the text her fiancée had sent her.

Fiancée.

She shakes her head, still smiling as she put her phone down to return to her cooking. She can't believe that she is actually engaged to the girl she had been love with since...since forever...well it was actually junior year but that seemed like forever ago.

Just thinking about Rachel makes her heart race and her head float. Their wedding being only a few weeks away, preparations were in full blow and of course Kurt had taken up the role as their planner without asking for their consent. They don't mind. After all, he is the best in the business.

Quinn sighed, fiddling with her engagement ring.

Where was Rachel anyway? She checked her phone again. No new texts, the last one had been received an hour and a half ago. Rachel would've called if she was going to be late. Quinn couldn't stop the worry that flooded her. It was only a 40 minute drive from Broadway to their humble abode. She ran a hand through her hair and silently reprimanded herself for always thinking the worst. Maybe Rachel was just caught in traffic or she got held up at work. She wouldn't allow her mind to jump to conclusions. The edges of her lips tugged into a small smile at the memory of Rachel tapping her nose and telling her not to worry so much because she frowned when she did so and frowning would lead to "premature wrinkling".

The smile disappears as she hears the familiar roar of a car passing by, heart falling as she looks out to a dark, empty driveway. She feels a tightness in her chest as anxiety begins to build again. She takes a deep breath, and decides to find out Rachel's whereabouts once and for all.

Picking up her phone, she dials the number that's been ingrained in her memory. She waits, fidgeting, as the she listens to the ringing, praying that she'll hear Rachel's cheerful chirping, telling her that she left her phone at work and had gone back to get it, explaining her absence. It goes to voicemail and the tightness returns.

"Hey honey, call me back soon okay? You told me you'd be home by now, dinners getting cold. This is the last time I'm cook your vegan casseroles for you," Quinn attempts to tease, but failing to inject any playfulness into her voice.

She scrolls through the contacts till she lands on the one she wants, her last bet and Rachel's closest cast mate. She dials and waits, shaking her leg impatiently, as she listens to the first ring, the second, the third...

"Hello? Quinn?" An annoyed voice questions.

"Hey San, I just wanted to check if you've seen Rachel? She told me she was on her way back but that was like two hours ago."

"Sorry Q but the last time I saw her was at the stage door. Don't worry your pretty little blonde head, I'm sure the munchkin is fine! Now if you don't mind, I'm a little busy." With that, the phone was cut off, leaving Quinn no more relaxed than before. Something was wrong, she could feel it in her heart. Something definitely wasn't right.

Suddenly, the shrill ringing of the house phone shattered that tense silence that filled the house, causing Quinn to jump and stare at it with trepidation and hopefulness. It takes a moment for her to snap out of her trance, but she rushes over to the offending phone and picks it up, almost dropping it with how sweaty her palms are.

"Hello, is this Quinn Fabray?"

"Yes, may I ask who is calling?" Quinn asked politely despite her disappointment that it wasn't Rachel.

"I'm calling from Lima General Hospital, I'm afraid to inform you that Rachel Berry, who listed you as her emergency contact, has been in a car accident. You should come immediately, we'll be able to give you more details on her condition." She can't hear anything else that's being said because she dropped the receiver, letting it dangle by the curled wire, as she remains frozen in shock.

This can't be real.

**December 5th 2020**

_"Hey Quinnie, it's your birthday so be home early, okay? I've got a surprise for you!" Rachel's melodious voice chimes with barely controlled excitement, causing Quinn to smile fondly because she can already envision Rachel's smug grin and twinkling brown eyes, the look she always has when she thinks she's being sneaky. Something is different this time but the blonde can't quite put her finger on it, maybe it's the way the brunette sounds like she's literally bursting at the seems with excitement or the faint quiver in Rachel's voice._

_It's later that night when Rachel is leading Quinn out of the house and into a car in a blindfold. "No peeking!" Rachel squeaks, swatting the blonde's hands while keeping a hand on the steering wheel when the she attempts to lift the cloth as sneakily as she can. Quinn chuckles but relents, resting her hands back on her thighs before moving to rub Rachel's teasingly, causing the brunette to swat her hands again. "Quinn Fabray!"_

_It's not long before they reach their destination and Rachel opens Quinn's door, leading her by the hand to somewhere before leaving her standing alone. "Rach?" The blonde calls out nervously. Surely Rachel wouldn't have left her behind right? What if the small brunette had tripped and fallen or gotten attacked? Moving her hands to remove the blindfold obscuring her vision, Quinn felt her hands yet again swatted. "Quinn, can't you follow simple instructions?" The blonde shrugged in apology. "I was worried about you."_

"_Aww, as sweet as that is, baby, I need you to keep that on for a while longer." Rachel said, sounding like she was just nearby. Quinn blindly reached out a hand, wiggling her fingers, hoping that she'd manage to touch the small girl but was met with nothing but rough...tree bark?_

"_Rach, where are we?"_

_The blonde was about to repeat her question when soft music met her ears. She felt the knot behind her head loosen and the blindfold fall away as Rachel removed it. Quinn gasped as she saw the candles laid out around a small checkered picnic mat, with food laid out on it. Red wine filled two glasses and there were all of Quinn's favourites, from ribeye steak to chocolate covered strawberries. _

"_Rach, you didn't have to! You're vegan!" Quinn told her although she was admittedly touched by the extents her girlfriend had gone to to celebrate her birthday. "Well, I did get Santana to help with some of the really bad stuff..." Rachel mumbled, blushing. She squealed when she felt herself wrapped up in a tight hug and lifted off the ground, before Quinn kissed her lightly on the lips._

_They ate and as they did, Quinn noticed Rachel fidgeting more and more, unable to sit still as she devoured her tofu scramble. "Baby, you okay?" Quinn asked, raising an eyebrow that said she wanted to know the truth. Rachel visibly gulped and set her food down, turning around to grab something while speaking._

"_Well Quinn, I was planning to get so this later but it has come to my attention that I can no longer contain myself."_

_Clearing her throat, Rachel shifted until she was facing Quinn, perched on one knee. She revealed a velvet blue box from behind her back and opened it, allowing Quinn's eyes to settle on the diamond ring before her._

"_Quinn, I love you. I love you so much, I don't think I could live without you. Seeing you smile, makes me smile, hearing you laugh, makes me laugh, when you cry, I cry. When we say goodbye, I feel like my heart is breaking, I can't handle the pain I feel when we're apart, the overwhelming need to see you, to touch you and kiss you. I know I'm not perfect and I can't deny that there'll be times when you might feel like strangling me but I love you and I'm in love with you. From the moment we first held hands, I've known that this relationship was meant to go the distance. I will never intentionally hurt you and I'll do my best to always be there for you and protect your heart, I will never leave your side if I can help it." Quinn could feel tears coming to her eyes and willed them back. She couldn't help but smile even wider. It had almost been an unspoken agreement that Quinn would be the one to propose, everyone had expected her to, but here Rachel was, on one knee._

"_Quinn Fabray, will you marry me?" Rachel asked, shakily. _

"_Of course!" _

She doesn't remember driving to the hospital, or parking, or walking to the front desk but the next thing she knows, she's being led down stark white hallways. She's almost in a trance as she follows after the nurse in front of her, it seems like she's been walking forever, passing door after door, and despite the bustle of the hospital around her, the only sounds she can hear are the thumping of her heart and her thundering footsteps.

Finally she's stopped outside a brown, wooden door, no different from the others around her. The doctor about to enter the room sees her and begins to explain what's happened to her, not that she can hear it over her heartbeat. She stares at the chipped corner of the door, as she vaguely understands the words "flipped over", "crushed", "internal bleeding", "ruptured" and "trauma".

"...there's nothing more we can do, I'm afraid." Quinn's eyes snap to the doctor's for the first time as tears well up in hers, obscuring his face. "No." Is all she can say through her shock and sobs. "No." She repeats, shaking her head in disbelief, this has to be a nightmare.

They tell her to be prepared for what lies on the other side of the door and she nods because that's all she can do except drying her cheeks. Her hand lands on the handle but she discovers that turning it is proving to be a challenge due to her shaky, sweaty hands. She fumbles with it a few times until she finally gets a good grip and opens the door.

At first, she can't see Rachel who is obscured by the nurses surrounding her and the blankets wrapped around her. When she does, it takes every fibre of her being not to fall to her knees and weep. She needs to be strong for Rachel, now more than ever.

Reaching her bedside, Quinn grabs her hand, holding it as tight as she can, probably tighter than she should've but this may be the last time she ever feels those tiny, perfect, delicate hands in hers. The blonde glances over her fiancée's face. She's covered with bruises, marring her soft, usually tan skin, and cuts, each one mirroring those in her breaking heart. She spots a few shards of glass still embedded in her skin and dried blood at her hairline and in her hair. She strokes Rachel's matted dark locks back and speaks to her softly.

"Hey honey, it's me, Quinn. I'm here. Please open your eyes, Rach, I need to see them. Please, for me?" She whispers repeatedly in Rachel's ear. It takes a while but slowly, Rachel's eyelids flutter and lift slightly. Quinn can just barely see her expressive chocolate eyes now clouded by pain.

"Quinn?" She croaks. The pain in Rachel's body is excruciating, it pulses with every beat of her heart, every breath that she takes, and she feels so tired. Exhausted, actually, like the time she and Quinn stayed up all night to "celebrate" their impending marriage.

"I-I need to sleep."

"No, Rach. No sleeping, you got it? You need to hang on." Quinn is openly sobbing now and Rachel realizes in her haze that something must be terribly wrong with her. Quinn tries talking to her to engage her, asking her to repeat her plans for their children's names, their genders, what they'll be like. Although Quinn can barely hear Rachel's quiet voice, she keeps trying. She prompts Rachel to tell her about her new production that Quinn has yet to have the honour of attending but it doesn't take long before Rachel is trailing off, eyes closing.

"Rach," she calls, squeezing her hand to get her attention, "what about the house on the hillside? You know, the one that we've been eyeing? Yeah, I'll buy it for you, I promise. I've been saving money for the down payment, I was going to tell you tomorrow when I had finalized everything with the agent. You need to stay with me, okay? That's our dream home and you need to be there."

"We're going to stay there forever, remember? Through the good and the bad and the ugly, we'll grow old together and always remember whether rich or for poor or for better that we still love each other forever." Quinn tells her weakening fiancee, quoting the words that Rachel had exclaimed just weeks ago when she was trying to convince Quinn that it was the house for them, the place where they'd start a family and live even after they retire. The small brunette cracks a smile at the memory, she was so sure back then of the future, now she wishes, prays that it'll happen, that she'll make it out of here, alive, and back to Quinn. The growing coldness that seems to envelope her and the heaviness of her eyelids makes it hard to hold onto that hope.

Seeing the love of her life fade before her eyes is too painful. Why was this happening now? Why was it happening at all? They were going to be married in a few weeks and now...

"G-get the chaplain, please," Quinn suddenly said, turning to the nurse standing behind her, startling her. "Please, I-we want to get married." The lady with auburn, curly hair, nodded, eyeing the couple with sympathy before leaving the room. Quinn glanced around wildly, only to be stilled by a soft hand on hers and a tiny voice.

"Q-Quinn, wha-what are you d-doing? I don't thi...I d-don't wa-want you to be alo-alone. You ne-need to m-move on when-n..." Rachel's weak protests were cut off by Quinn kissing her tenderly on the lips, both savouring the feeling, the tingles and sparks that they still felt everytime it happened. "Shh, baby, rest. I want to do this, for me, for us. Please?" Quinn asked, almost begging as she tightened her hold on Rachel's limp fingers. Relief filled her heart at the tiny nod she received in return and she told the small girl that she would be right back before dashing out of the room.

She almost collapsed as she moved beyond the door, tears threatened to fall from her hazel eyes but she willed them back along with the pain in her chest. Moving to the door opposite Rachel's, she peaked through the window and spied an elderly couple, the man was sitting on the hospital bed, laughing heartily at something his wife, sitting in the chair beside him, had said. Knocking on the wood, Quinn entered.

Rachel slipped in and out of consciousness. She could almost feel her heart slowing, skipping a few beats occassionally. It was an odd feeling and sent fear coursing through her. She needed to see Quinn. She needed to look into those loving hazel eyes and hear that soothing voice assure her that she would be fine, that in a matter of weeks, they'd be walking down the aisle in wedding gowns they had bought recently, laying there eyes on each other for what felt like the first time, and exchanging vows that had yet to be written. Rachel knew what she wanted to say though, she knew now.

She opened her eyes when she felt a familiar soft, warm hand cupping her cheek. She glanced at the blurry outline of the blonde hovering over her, wishing that her vision would clear, if only for a second to see her soon to be wife once more. She could hear a deep voice distantly, the chaplain, who was standing at the foot of her bed, quickly reciting a few verses. She tries to lift her hand when she feels Quinn put something, a ring, in it but her fingers barely twitch. Her bones feel like they're made metal as she attempts to lift her arm, failing. Tears of frustration, of disappointment, of overwhelming despair and joy leak from her eyes.

She tries her best to smile when Quinn's hand takes hers, manouvering it so that Rachel's fingers are the one to slide that ring onto her finger even if her fiancee, no wife, isn't the one doing it. The brunette can just make out the touch of another ring as it slides over her ring finger and she can't help running her fingertips over the band, the symbol of their love, even if it wasn't theirs. Quinn glances down at the matching rings, the ones she borrowed from the kind couple next door, and couldn't help but think of the ones they were supposed to collect from the jewellers next Thursday. Rachel had specially requested a show off to accompany her.

Quinn gazes into Rachel's deep brown eyes, they're foggy, looking at her but not seeing her. They're dim, no longer containing the bright sparkle they had just this morning when she kissed Rachel goodbye for the day. She has to say something because maybe Rachel can hang on to the sound of her voice even if she can't see her.

"I...I want you forever, forever and always, through the good and the bad and the ugly. We'll grow old together, and always remember whether happy or sad or whatever, we'll still love each other, forever and always." She whispers, hoping that Rachel can hear and understand her. She knows she can when the dark eyes before her shift ever so slightly as though trying to focus on her and tears slip down Rachel's pale cheeks.

"Q-Quinn." The tiny girl whispers, tugging gently on her hand. Rachel can hear the beeping slowing and she knows it's her heart. She knows that she's not going to see her dads again, she's not going to receive her first Tony Award or star in Funny Girl, she's won't get to see Quinn pregnant with their first child...

"Quinn." She croaks more desperately as it becomes harder to breathe, harder to talk. She sees the blonde lean down further. She can see darkness creeping into her vision and her consciousness slipping away but she needs to tell Quinn, she knows that this will devestate her but she needs...needs to let her know. She coughs, tasting metallic blood in her mouth and feels gentle droplets fall onto her cheeks from above.

"Yes, Rach?" The angelic, muffled voice encourages. She feels lips graze her forehead, her temple, her cheek, her lips. "I'm right here, baby. What is it?"

"I-I love you for-forever and al-always, ple-please j-just remem-ber even if I-I'm not th-there, I'll alway-ys love you..." Forver and always, she wants to say but she can't. She can't breathe anymore and she musters all her strength to squeeze Quinn's hand one last time.

**A/N Well it was my birthday yesterday, at least where I am, so I felt like uploading something and this has been on my mind for a while. For those who are following my other stories, I'm so sorry for not updating for ages! I'll try and get something up soon. Thanks for reading, I look forward to your reviews!**


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